Animal Hospital Testimonials

Dakota Acupuncture for Hearing Loss and Pain

Initially, I took my dog, Dakota, to Dr. Hartwig because he was no longer hearing me. After getting to know him in a kind way and thoroughly examining him, Dr. Hartwig said,” I’m more concerned about the pain he is in than about his loss of hearing.” I didn’t fully understand but she indicated that hearing loss and pain might be related.

After a period of time, during which Dakota was on pain medications, Dr. Hartwig recommended acupuncture. Following a few months of acupuncture, Dakota’s energy and liveliness increased and incredibly (to me) he began to hear again. I feel that Dr. Hartwig’s TLC, and the acupuncture added to the quality of his life in his final years.

– Pat Emerson

Pain Free Chauncey

Dr. Hartwig and her staff has provided exemplary care for our family which includes our pet labradors Chauncey and Lucky. We are pleased to have developed a solid trusting relationship through the times of service provided by Tender Loving Care during the past several years of our lives which gives our family a great piece of mind.

Dr. Hartwig is knowledgeable, attentive, professional and compassionate with our family. Dr. Hartwig and staff show a great concern for the medical conditions of our pets. Although the office is busy, time is always made for our pets needs and we are given individual attention with questions welcome and answered with integrity, character, and again professionalism.

Recently, we were aware of Chauncey our nine year old lab slowing down a bit from growing older. Chauncey has always loved to play ball. He usually walks around indoors and outdoors with a ball hanging from his mouth. Dr. Hartwig and her assistant Deb noticed he seemed different from his last senior wellness exam and mentioned he could be in pain. We were shocked to think of our nine year old puppy in pain and had a hard time believing it with our daily experience of living with Chauncey. I guess we didn’t see the gradual change in his physical being or maybe we didn’t want to believe our puppy wasn’t a pup anymore. Actually, he did seem slower the next day after retrieving tennis balls and we thought it was just age.

Dr. Hartwig suggested we give Chauncey the medications Rimadyl, Gabepentin, and the joint supplement Dasuquin to comfort his unnoticed pain. We were leery to try the pain relievers due to being sensitive of over medicating our dog, yet we decided to give it a try due to our trust in Dr. Hartwig. In two weeks time, Chauncey is actually acting like our image of him as a young puppy again, jumping up the stairs and always wanting to play ball.

One day, he woke me up early in the morning with three balls in his mouth! The office has phoned us to check on the condition of Chauncey indicating the genuine care and concern as we have experienced calls many times with our pets after visits. Thanks to the medical care provided by Tender Loving Care, our dogs are each living a happy and healthy life resulting with us being happy clients! Our five year old lab Lucky runs through the office door, so happy to see the entire staff. We also appreciate the individual love, care and energy given by her assistant Deb who says she is living the dream working at Tender Loving Care for Dr. Hartwig.

– The Laartz Family

Henry Patches – cured from constant itching

Henry has had problems with hair falling out on his back and really bad itching for a few years now. I have been to multiple veterinarians looking for help for him. I have been offered sprays which did nothing, a recovery collar which kept him from licking and scratching to a great extent but did nothing to address the problem and left him miserable. And I was offered allergy testing which may or may not be successful and potentially very stressful for Henry and also very expensive. The last resort was steroids.

He got really bad every year in the Spring and into summer with a bloody back, so bad that i fashioned tee shirts for him to wear using newborn baby onesies. I opted for the steroids as I could give him a ground up pill in his wet food, which reduced his stress level (hate to think about forcing pills down his throat) and it was very effective. But steroids can be very dangerous as they can have a long term detrimental effect on his organs.

I continued to look for another solution to his problem. As luck would have it I was given the name of his current, wonderful veterinarian, Dr Tricia Hartwig. She wanted to try supplements that would work on cleansing his liver, where the allergic reactions could be controlled. What she said made much more sense to me than anything I had tried before. So I started giving him specific Standard Process supplements, beginning late Fall 2014 at which time I took him off the Prednilosone.

Before long I could leave his recovery collar off and his fur filled in beautifully. He went through winter 2014/2015 looking and acting like a cat with no medical problems. This Spring, 2015, has been the true test. His fur looks wonderful, he is so happy (and so am I) and he has been free of steroids for about 8 months. This Spring he has a little itching around his ears but nothing beyond that, just like he was before the severe itching and loss of hair began a few years ago.

I am crediting Dr Hartwig, Standard Process, and myself to some extent for his success. Myself because I was determined to give this regimen a chance to work. So I am crushing his pills and adding them to his wet food and making sure he eats his “enhanced” food. I get up every night and hide his dry food so he will be hungry in the morning to ensure success.

This is the first testimonial I have ever written in my long life but I feel so strongly about what is happening that I feel compelled to share my Henry’s story. Everything came together to create this amazing outcome. Henry is so happy, he looks wonderful and I am no longer worried about giving him a dangerous drug.

Corny but true, this has been a miracle!

– Grammy AV

Oscar, cured from mobility problems with acupuncture

Two years ago, my 7 year old boxer, Oscar, was suffering from severe limited mobility and pain. He was unable to put almost any weight on his hind legs and walks, stairs, beds and couches were challenges for him. He was deteriorating before my eyes. I took him to several vets who did nothing to help him. I heard about a friend’s dog who was helped by acupuncture and started our quest. Incredibly good luck or karma brought me to TLC and Dr. Hartwig.

I called and asked about a hundred questions and she took the time I needed to be comfortable. She met Oscar and took the time to develop a treatment plan for him that all of us were comfortable with. He has been getting a combination of acupuncture and medication that has been so positive for his quality of life. His deterioration was halted and he has gained much of his mobility back. He now stands with weight on his hind legs, goes on daily,medium-length walks and can jump on the bed.

Dr. Hartwig has an incredibly caring demeanor and I think her most admirable quality is that she really listens to you in developing a treatment plan for your animal. She never pushes more than is necessary and is aware of the expense and does all she can to keep treatment affordable and available. She listens to your reports between visits and she knows her patients. Oscar loves her even though she routinely sticks needles into sensitive spots on his body. He loves coming for treatment and his favorite words are “do you want to go see Doc?”

I don’t like to think about what his condition would be now if we hadn’t started acupuncture and pain management with Dr. Hartwig. She has truly been a lifesaver. I wholeheartedly recommend TLC and Dr. Hartwig for acupuncture, mobility and pain issues and all you pet’s needs.